Last night we arrived in Barcelona to find the city in the middle of one of their largest street festivals. The streets were packed with thousands of people and musicians playing. We checked into our hotel after calling them several times to get help with the directions. When we ask the best way to get there, they just said, “oh, yes, you are very close.” We knew that….we just couldn’t find the tiny alley where it was located. Eventually, we found it on our own. Then we hit the streets to explore the festival until 4AM in typical Barcelona style.

Today, as we explored the city, we came across several events, including my favorite, human castling. This sport is a long standing tradition in Catalonia and it’s quite amazing to watch. The first group we saw, here in red, was up in no time at all, as we stared in amazement wondering just how high they’d go and in awe of their speed. Yes, they really are just standing on each other’s shoulders. It’s amazing to watch how they climb up on each other, using their belts as foot holds and locking arms for support. The castle is considered complete when the smallest child reaches the top and raised 4 fingers, symbolizing the 4 yellow stripes in the Catalonian flag. The group in light blue went next and they seemed to wobble a bit more. When the castle was nearly complete, they were sudden gasps as the castle fell apart, sending people flying! Obviously there is a huge group of people at the bottom acting as a human safety net, but it’s still very shocking. Stephanie managed to catch them mid fall in the photo.


Check out this link for more about human castling.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIIzGnoYUtc
(be sure to watch the end, around minute 2:40!)

The rest of the afternoon was spent eating ice cream and drinking Sangria in glasses the size of fishbowls. In the evening, we met up with my college friend, Josh Thomson. He took us to a great restaurant/bar where we had Spanish tapas and champagne to celebrate his engagement (to Rebekah) and Stephanie’s engagement (to Chap).